Participants in the ICCROM-GCI 2005 advanced course in documentation, held in Rome. This four-week course for midcareer professionals and educators addressed the needs, methodology, and techniques for acquiring and using records, inventories, and information management tools
for the conservation of cultural heritage. Photo:
Alejandro Alva/Courtesy of ICCROM.

Documenting Our Past for the Future
Documentation, which can create a lasting record of heritage in the event that it is lost, is increasingly recognized as essential to conservation. How does documentation contribute to the conservation process, and what efforts are under way to increase its use?